Victoria Azarenka shuts down her season, calls it quits for 2014

WUHAN, China -- Former No. 1 Victoria Azarenka withdrew from the Wuhan Open on Sunday citing a right foot injury and subsequently shutting down her season for
Victoria Azarenka shuts down her season, calls it quits for 2014
Victoria Azarenka shuts down her season, calls it quits for 2014 /

WUHAN, China -- Former No. 1 Victoria Azarenka withdrew from the Wuhan Open on Sunday citing a right foot injury and subsequently shutting down her season for the rest of the year.

The Evolution of Tennis Fashion: Ana Ivanovic

2005

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Braces! Nike! Separates! 17-year-old Ivanovic starts her climb.

2006

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Ivanovic makes her move to Adidas, where she'd end up signing a lifetime deal in 2010.

2006

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Wimbledon whites. Also note the Wilson racket.

2006

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Adidas opts for the string tank-top. Ah, the mid-aughts.

2007

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Ivanovic's first signature dress, which she wore to en route to her first Slam final at Roland Garros. She lost to Justine Henin in straight sets.

2007

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Ivanovic at the U.S. Open. One of Ivanovic's freshest looks.

2008

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Adidas never did better than the bubble dress, which appeared in two Slam finals in 2008.

2008

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Ivanovic lost to Maria Sharapova in the 2008 Australian Open in the blue version of the Adidas bubble dress.

2008

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The iconic coral bubble dress launched a champion. Ivanovic won her maiden title at the French Open and took over the No. 1 ranking.

2008

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Let's forget the petal dress ever happened. An early example of Adidas trying too hard.

2008

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You're forgiven if you forget this look. Ivanovic was seeded No. 1 at the U.S. Open and lost to a qualifier in the second round.

2009

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Ivanovic was stuck with Adidas' attempt to "Go Greek" for over six months.

2009

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Swapping the colorways didn't save Adidas' "Greek Goddess" look.

2009

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Things get meshy at Wimbeldon.

2009

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The mesh continued in Tokyo. As Adidas would eventually learn, less is more.

2010

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Well at least they got the simple part right. This marked a turn towards a more modern look from Adidas.

2010

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The first great dress since her iconic 2008 dress.

2011

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The heavy zipper on the front was a distracting design choice.

2011

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A callback to the bright blue of her 2008 bubble dress.

2012

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Seemingly a simple design, but the dress never fit well on Ivanovic and the "X" pattern across the chest was unfortunate.

2012

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Ivanovic actually pulled off this neon-yellow look better than others did at the 2012 U.S. Open.

2013

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One dress, two colorways. Not feeling the faux-strapless look.

2013

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Ivanovic went all UCLA by the time spring came.

2014

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Still obsessed with greek draping and mesh, Adidas actually finally got it right at the Australian Open.

2014

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For Paris, Adidas kept the same silhouette and got rid of the draped neckline. Voila!

2104

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She wore this simple dress in both black and pink at the U.S. Open and it was easily her best look since 2008.

"Unfortunately I will not be competing in any tournaments for the remainder of the season," Azarenka wrote on her Facebook page. "It has been a very tough year for me. I have been trying my best to improve day in and day out by pushing and pushing…but that does not appear to be the best approach for me right now. I will use this time to work on making a full recovery and take care of my body to compete at my best next season."

Post by Victoria Azarenka.

A two-time Slam champion, Azarenka began the 2014 season well by making the final of the Brisbane International and the quarterfinals of the Australian Open, where she was the defending champion. But a right foot injury forced her off the tour. Apart from an aborted comeback attempt at the BNP Paribas Open in March, Azarenka did not play a match for over four months, making a return at the Aegon International in Eastbourne, England in June. Despite playing through a knee injury over the summer, Azarenka made back-to-back quarterfinals at the Rogers Cup and U.S. Open. Her last match of the season was a 6-3, 6-4 loss to eventual champion Ana Ivanovic last week at the Tokyo Open. 


Published
Courtney Nguyen
COURTNEY NGUYEN

Contributor, SI.com Nguyen is a freelance writer for SI.com, providing full coverage of professional tennis both on and off the court. Her content has become a must-read for fans and insiders to stay up-to-date with a sport that rarely rests. She has appeared on radio and TV talk shows all over the world and is one of the co-hosts of No Challenges Remaining, a weekly podcast available on iTunes. Nguyen graduated from the University of California, Irvine in 1999 and received a law degree from the University of California, Davis in 2002. She lives in the Bay Area.